The End Violence Against Women Coalition has published a report setting out the evidence base for how best to engage men and boys in ending violence against women and girls.
Produced with leading academics Professor Nicole Westmarland and Dr Stephen Burrell, New paths to prevention: engaging more boys and men in ending violence against women explores how society can engage men as agents of change in ending violence against women and girls (VAWG); making 10 key recommendations to government.
VAWG is a pervasive violation of women’s fundamental human rights and one of the most urgent problems facing society today. A VAWG offence is reported to the police every two minutes in England and Wales, and many more are never reported at all.
As we increasingly live our lives online, violence against women and girls is being perpetrated in new ways. But what remains constant is that the overwhelming majority is perpetrated by men.
Regression in young men’s attitudes
The rapid and unfettered spread of extreme misogyny online highlights the urgency in engaging men and boys in gender equality and addressing the polarisation of young men and women in the digital age.
We are seeing a regression in young people’s attitudes – bucking the trend of each new generation becoming more progressive than its predecessor. Our recent YouGov polling found a decrease of 17% in 18-25 year olds able to correctly identify that women are not responsible for keeping themselves safe from sexual violence, compared to polling in 2021.
This data supports the findings of multiple academic studies, including that there is a widening gap between men and women’s attitudes, with young men in particular becoming regressive in their attitudes to consent and equality.
Andrea Simon, Director of the End Violence Against Women Coalition (EVAW), said:
“If we are to end violence against women, it is crucial that we engage men and boys in this work, which for too long has been perceived as a burden for women and girls to shoulder.
Tackling gender inequality not only helps prevent women and girls from being harmed but also benefits men and boys, by transforming restrictive expectations around masculinity. This requires change across the whole of society, from the media to sport and education.
This new report shows that men and boys must be directly involved in the conversation, and in any action to tackle violence against women and girls.
Engaging men and boys is a crucial part of preventing violence against women and girls. A slew of reports has found the government is not doing enough or investing sufficiently in prevention, which is essential if it is to meet its own mission to halve VAWG in a decade.”
Resources
Press release: https://www.endviolenceagainstwomen.org.uk/new-how-to-engage-men-in-ending-vawg/
Full report: https://www.endviolenceagainstwomen.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/EVAW-Masculinity-report-2025.pdf